Worse news: for now, Kyle Boller is the Raiders' quarterback. Behind him (in random order because, really, you don't want to see either under center for any length of time … which is saying something when the other option is Kyle Boller): punter Shane Lechler and rookie Terrelle Pryor, just off a five-game suspension.

Those choices, coupled with Oakland's early season success, have them scrambling for alternative plans. According to Yahoo.com's Jason Cole, that includes making a concerted effort to convince Bengals owner Mike Brown to trade quarterback Carson Palmer, who opted to sit out the season instead of return to Cincinnati for another year of clown college. (Turns out, the jokes on Carson; the Bengals are 4-2 and seem to be doing quite well with rookie quarterback Andy Dalton.)

After Sunday's game, the Raiders "hit the phones quickly after the game Sunday, hoping to get the 'retired' Palmer, who has been pushing for a deal since early in the offseason," Cole writes. "In fact, Palmer politely asked Brown again this week for a trade, according to a source close to the situation. So far, no go. In all likelihood, Brown will continue to stonewall. Brown has never been a guy to give in to demands, even when they are logical. Bengals fans probably remember the package of draft picks, including at least one first-rounder and another pick that likely would have become a No. 1, Brown once turned down for wide receiver Chad Ochocinco."

(That's the same Chad Ochocinco, by the way, who was eventually shipped to New England for a fifth- and sixth-rounder, and was on the field for just seven snaps Sunday in the Patriots' comeback win over the Cowboys. The point: there's no reason to think that Brown will budge.)

Compounding matters: the perception is that Brown, were he to ship Palmer, wouldn't send him to a possible playoff team. Raiders owner Mark Davis could try to sweeten the deal but, as Cole notes, the organization is without second-, third- or fourth-round picks in 2012 because of previous moves.

Cole suggests that Oakland "would do well to offer Cincinnati a third-round pick in 2013 that could increase in value to a second- or even first-round pick if Palmer performed well either this year or in 2012."

Other options include convincing David Garrard to come out of semi-retirement because after that, it's slim pickins' on the free-agent quarterback market. Earlier this month, when the Dolphins lost Chad Henne for the season, they settled onSage Rosenfels after failing to sign Garrard. The other quarterbacks they put through the paces? Kellen Clemens, JP Losman, Jim Sorgi, and Charlie Frye.

But even if the Raiders somehow convince Brown to deal Palmer, or talk Garrard into returning to football, there's still the issue of learning the offense. As we saw with Kerry Collins and Indy, that's more than a two-week endeavor. Oakland's best bet might be to stick with Boller in the short term, rely on the running game and the defense, and pray they can land Palmer or Garrard and give one of them enough time to learn the system before throwing them on the field.

Report: Raiders trying to trade for Carson Palmer

It'll be interesting to see what the Raiders do, that's for sure. I for one love seeing teams like the Raiders and Lions succeed after struggling for so long, That being said Boller is certainly not the answer for the Raiders and in my opinion a qb like him will kill the Raiders chances of making the playoffs this year. Teams are going to stack the line against the Raiders and force Boller to throw the football and that can't be good at all. Campbell may not be a star but at least he can occasionally stretch the field and opposing team have to respect him, something they'll never have to worry about for Boller.

The problem with the Raiders picking up anybody that's playing on another team right now, is the Raiders don't have any draft picks to trade from the next NFL draft. They only have a first round pick, no second, no 3rd and I believe no 4th either. Why would anybody trade a decent backup qb to the Raiders for a draft 2 years from now?

Tough situation for the Raiders.... I wish them the best, it's not easy to overcome any injury but this one is gonna be a tough one to overcome

Since: Sep 12, 2006

Posted on: October 18, 2011 12:18 am

Report: Raiders trying to trade for Carson Palmer

As a Raiders fan, it was numbing to see Campbell take a head first slide and snap his collar-bone. We've seen quarter backs come and go in Oakland a plenty, so now what? Carson Palmer is caged by the Bengals owner, Garrard to undergo surgery for a herniated disc, and Favre finally retired. Slim pickings if you ask me with "can't throw the Boller". So how's out there? Well, let's travel to the trash heap and see what we find. Oh look right between the milk cartons and tin cans it's, Trent Edwards, Patrick Ramsey, Troy Smith, Shaun Hill, and Jake Delhomme. If you ask me, the Raiders strong run attack and special teams will not be enough to carry them into the playoffs. Sad to say, but the rest of the season could be in the dumps. Any thoughts on a replacement quarterback?

Since: Oct 25, 2008

Posted on: October 17, 2011 9:09 pm

Report: Raiders trying to trade for Carson Palmer

I agree about the Mariners owner. All he cares about is keeping Ichiro happy and rolling in the money. He could care less about winning. Luckily, Trader Jack is beginning to put the pieces together and will have a winner back in Seattle by 2013. Maybe then the idiot fans will finally be able to quit talking about 1995 and 2001.

Since: Jun 25, 2009

Posted on: October 17, 2011 8:24 pm

Report: Raiders trying to trade for Carson Palmer

the raiders are missing the obvious choise.JAMARCUS RUSSELL!!!!he was a former #1 pick who knows the raiders system,knows the fan base well,and may even be off codeine.what better story could you have in raidernation than a reclamation project named jam. russell?think how motivated he will be.i promise you he will outperform boller at least.give him a 2nd shot.

LOL Either you are totally kidding, or Jamarcus isn't the only one on codeine. The Raiders wrote Russell checks totalling about 35 million dollars before they were allowed to cut him without any further obligation. They aren't going to bring back an over weight pig of an athlete that chose food and drugs over the gym. The guy honestly had trouble throwing a spiral for God sakes.....

Since: May 28, 2007

Posted on: October 17, 2011 7:10 pm

Report: Raiders trying to trade for Carson Palmer

the raiders are missing the obvious choise.JAMARCUS RUSSELL!!!!he was a former #1 pick who knows the raiders system,knows the fan base well,and may even be off codeine.what better story could you have in raidernation than a reclamation project named jam. russell?think how motivated he will be.i promise you he will outperform boller at least.give him a 2nd shot.

Since: Dec 9, 2006

Posted on: October 17, 2011 7:02 pm

Report: Raiders trying to trade for Carson Palmer

Nope, but Wayne Weaver or the Mariners owner are damn close.

Since: Sep 21, 2010

Posted on: October 17, 2011 6:57 pm

Report: Raiders trying to trade for Carson Palmer

Brown should look at Robert Kraft and the way the Pats operate before he decides to block a deal for Palmer. If Palmer played this type of hardball with them, the outcome would be simple: it would be the Pats calling the Raiders to deal him. 'Nuff said. If they Bengals don't deal him they spite themselves of perhaps some good draft picks next year. Again, they should follow NE's example if they ever want to reach that level.

Since: Sep 13, 2006

Posted on: October 17, 2011 6:09 pm

Report: Raiders trying to trade for Carson Palmer

Brett Favre anyone?<br />

Since: Dec 19, 2006

Posted on: October 17, 2011 6:08 pm

Report: Raiders trying to trade for Carson Palmer

Oh, and the win-loss record of the teams the Bengals have beat? 7-16. Lets see how Andy Daulton looks when he plays teams not named Indianapolis and Jacksonville.

Since: Dec 19, 2006

Posted on: October 17, 2011 6:03 pm

Report: Raiders trying to trade for Carson Palmer

Leverage? What leverage? They aren't going to trade him. There is no leverage. Mike Brown is going to sit on his finger and spin around in glee as a very attractive commodity sits and rots, all in the name of ego and pride. That's a smart buisness man. No wonder the Bengals are "the gold standard" in the NFL, with all of thier titles and playoff runs. Is there a worse owner in sports?